Allen County getting ready to embark on a new drainage project that is a first for them.
The Allen County Engineers Office has the opportunity to partner with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources as part of their H-2-Ohio Project to improve the water quality in the Lake Erie and Maumee River watershed. Allen County will be creating 3-wetland areas near the area of Bluelick Road and North West Street that will act as retention areas for runoff waters.
Allen County Drainage Engineer Joe Gearing explains, “We have been working on the Baughman project. It’s been a long time coming. We were able to secure some funds through ODNR, about $1.5 million dollars for the construction of 3 wetlands totaling about 2o acres. Those 20 acres will have about 400 acres of watershed drainage to those 20 acres and filtering out some of the contaminants and phosphorous.”
They hope to start construction in the summer of 2021. If you have any low-lying land in Allen County and are interested in putting in wetlands contact, the Allen County Drainage Engineers office to find out more about participating.
